The invention relates to an antenna means for a radio device provided with a radio transfer or radio communication facility. An antenna means of this kind is defined in the first part of claim 1. Specifically, the invention relates to an antenna means for a device that is mobile or portable. More specifically, the invention relates to an antenna means for a personal (cellular) telephone having a small internal depth for receiving the antenna means. Such a telephone may be a terminal in, e.g., a GSM, an AMPS, or a JDC cellular telephone system.
In a radio device, such as a personal telephone, it is advantageous to achieve an antenna means that has an effective radiation distribution and a high degree of efficiency. These parameters of the antenna means effect its ability to transfer electro-magnetic radiation energy between the radio device, being a first terminal, and a radio communication means. The radio communication means may be a second terminal or a base station, e.g., in any of the above-mentioned cellular telephone systems, with the capacity of establishing a communication connection between the telephone and a second terminal.
The telephone may function in different operating modes. Two different operating modes are a stand-by mode and a call (talk) mode. In these two operating modes there may be different demands upon the antenna means. For example, if the telephone is carried in the stand-by mode, the carrier (a person) may require a small-size and compact configuration of the telephone. An antenna means configuration extending outward from the telephone may be inconvenient in this case.
The reception and transmission performance of an antenna means depends not only on the antenna means itself, but also on a radiation path between the telephone and the radio communication means. Obstacles in the radiation path will lower the antenna performance. In personal telephones it is important that the body of the user does not excessively obstruct the radiation path. Therefore, an antenna means extending sufficiently from the housing of the telephone is required. Demands for performance are higher in the call mode.